Forged in Steel, a card driven strategy game for 2-4 players

$20,998

pledged of $15,000 goal

253

backers

The campaign has ended, but you can still pre-order a copy of Forged in Steel by clicking here.

Knight Works is proud to present a special Kickstarter campaign that highlights the Industrial Revolution. This time period marked a major turning point in history; almost every aspect of daily life was influenced in some way. The stock market began to flourish and unique social and economic changes exhibited unprecedented sustained growth. Forged in Steel uses this rich theme as a backdrop to provide interesting tactics and decisions that allow players to recreate the feel of a wealthy industrialist in the late 1800's.

"Forged in Steel is a game of strategy and development set in Pueblo County, Colorado spanning the years 1890-1910. Known as 'The Pittsburgh of the West' for its steel mills, Pueblo was also at the center of an immense economic and cultural boom at the turn of the century. As a prominent local family, you must use your influence and strengths to build an empire and dominate the local economies. The paths to success are many, whether you wrest control of municipal development, commercial, mining, industrial sector, or some combination: the choice is up to you. Command your prominent local family and manipulate grand historical themes to your benefit."

Forged in Steel is a card driven strategy game, designed by Wade Broadhead, where players competitively construct a city and region together, closely intertwined but always in fierce competition. Each and every build changes the landscape. Depending on how an Era has developed, immigrants will arrive and locate willing employers or overwhelm the region sending it into riots which will potentially ruin all your hard earned successes. Players set the yearly “Headlines” which effect the development (and rules) of the region and play throughout the Era. Every turn has interesting decisions whether to use cards as events or for the points on each card defined as Municipal Muscle (MM). MM is the currency players use to buy, build, and seize structures on the game board. All events are beneficial, but players will find it important to balance events and MM to form strategies for the end game. Check out the rules here.

This video will give you a detailed walk-through of the game so you can get the feel for it.

Hands in the Sea is a two-player deck building wargame on the First Punic War, between Rome and Carthage, 264-241 BC.

Each player has a starting deck of cards they use to perform various actions, up to two per round. Actions range from colonization, to naval movement, to battle, with most activity centered in and around Sicily and Sardinia/Corsica. Players may also purchase additional cards from their own custom decks, or from a set of neutral cards that either player may purchase. There are also Strategy cards that each player can purchase (one, max) that give the owning player some special advantage.

The game is played over the course of several turns, up to a maximum of twelve. At the end of each turn, players resolve random events, collect income and score victory points. There are several paths to victory, ranging from simply having the highest score at the end of the game, to capturing the opposing player's capital.

Inspired by A Few Acres of Snow, this game features several new elements, including navies, naval battles, cavalry superiority, mercenaries, field battles, sieges, manpower, strategy cards, random events, turn based scoring, bribery and tactical bonuses.

The name of the game is based on a quote from a Carthaginian commander, who claimed at the outbreak of hostilities that the Carthaginian control of the seas was such that the Romans would not even dare wash their hands in the sea.

We have hired the talented Naomi Robinson to do the cover for Hands in the Sea. The cover will be a beautiful representation of a naval battle with Roman and Carthage triremes. You can see another box cover that Naomi created for our friends at Terra Nova Games here, called Ophir.

We are currently working with several game reviewers and we should have some sample card artwork within a few days.
The guys at H.A.M.T.A.G. on BoardGameGeek placed Hands in the Sea in their "Top 5 Anticipated Games of 2015". You can see them in the video here at the 6:30 and 25:00 minute marks.

Want Extra Steel Dice??? Now that we have hit the Steel Die Stretch Goal, you can add to your pledge to purchase extra dice. You can pickup as many as you would like, just add $3 per die. Remember, these are Kickstarter Exclusive dice, so short of seeing us at a convention, or picking them up on another Kickstarter campaign, you will not have a chance to get them.

We will be offering an 8-1/2" x 11" full color 24 page companion guide for the Forged in Steel game. This very special guide will be jam packed with content and will offer insight into the various cards and history behind the events in Pueblo, Colorado. This guide will be written by the designer, Wade Broadhead, who served as a City Planner in Pueblo for many years. Wade will be including a F.A.Q. section, designer notes, and a history behind the turbulent times that took a small city in Colorado to being called the Steel City and considered to be the Pittsburgh of the West.

This guide will also contain special areas that will offer tips, tricks, and strategies for both new players and players with experience in card driven strategy games. Backers can add this guide to any pledge by including an additional $8.

KICKSTARTER? - All projects on Kickstarter do not charge backers until the project reaches both the end date, and its funding goal. When both of those happen then Knight Works, LLC will receive the funds within 14 days of the project end date. At that point we will begin working with the manufacturer to produce the expansion. Based on previous estimates it will take approximately nine months to receive the game. Once we have the game a survey will be sent out through the Kickstarter website to collect shipping addresses.

Additional Copies? - Backers are more than welcome to add additional copies of Forged in Steel to their pledge reward. All you have to do is add an additional $40 to whichever pledge you choose and I will include those in your delivery. If you are a retailer please contact me to discuss additional discounts. Note: You have to provide proof of your physical or online store.

Signed Copies? - The $55 Mayor Pledge and $95 Hands in the Sea Bundle include the option to receive a signed copy of the Forged in Steel game and Hands in the Sea game respectively. If you would like your games on any other pledge reward signed and include your name in the rule book all you have to do is add the amount listed in the shipping chart below to your pledge.

SHIPPING? - Customers in the United States will be sent the game(s) free of charge. This includes Alaska and Hawaii. Note: Due to the significant cost to ship a package overseas, we will need to charge International supporters additional funds to cover those expenses. However, both our Knight Works Bundle and Mayor Bundle not only offer discounts on the games but significant discounts on international shipping!

All backers that choose a reward that includes a caricature must provide a suitable photograph of yourself or a person that is aware you are using their photograph for this reward. We will send out a message to the backers of this reward once the project closes. If you cannot provide a suitable photograph within two weeks after the project closes we may need to include your caricature in an upcoming game. Note: By pledging for a reward that includes a caricature you are taking responsibility for that illustration as if you hired an artist to draw the image for you.

Throughout the Rocky Mountain area you can find various publishers and designers. We are in the early stages of building a cooperative network of like-minded small publishers, designers, and various groups from the gaming industry. Our goal is to bring about positive change, foster a creative community, as well as promoting ethical and sustainable business practices. With that in mind, I want to introduce a few guests who have loaned us their time to ensure this Kickstarter will be as exciting and unique as it can be.

Common Man Games, currently nearing completion of The 2nd Edition of Police Precinct, is committed to growing it's Law Enforcement Line of Board Games one great title at a time. Next up might be, a reborn SNITCH!, where you manage confidential Informants to help bring to justice The Feared King Pin of the Crime world. To learn more about this and our upcoming dice version of Police Precinct, Season Two of Police Precinct (containing 3 major expansions/episodes), and The Modular Board version of Police Precinct, go to www.commonman.com. To be sure to stay on top of all these releases, sign up for our updates via the form at the bottom of our homepage.

Based in Austin, TX and Denver, CO, Terra Nova Games was founded in 2013 as a way to share their passion for the board gaming hobby with others. They launched their company after their first successfully Kickstarted game, Guile, and have since had another successful campaign for their second release, Ophir. It has been their mission to encourage face-to-face fun through interactive and innovative gameplay. They strive to bring people together in person, to use games as a means of socializing and strategizing around a table of friends. They are currently working on their third game, Far Space Foundry, which you can track the status of by following Terra Nova Games on Twitter.

We started developing board games back in 2000, but it was not until the introduction of Kickstarter that we were able to mass produce games. We have many titles designed, heavily play tested and ready to go. The number one issue in getting those games produced is the high cost to manufacture board and card games. With your help we can bring numerous fun, high quality and thematic games to players across the world.

100% of the money we gather from Kickstarter will be used to pay for printing costs or for the cost of making/delivering awards (shipping, etc). If we raise significantly more, the extra will go into a larger print run, bringing the cost of the expansion down, and in upgrading the already existing rewards.

Please check out our Facebook page and click "Like" on our page at: www.facebook.com/knightworksgames. Once the Kickstarter project closes Facebook, Twitter and http://www.KnightWorksGames.com will be the primary way that we post updates and future news items. Clicking "Like" on the Facebook page will also give you a chance to win monthly contests. You can also follow us on Twitter at: @knightworks

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Risks and challenges

Knight Works, LLC was an early adopter on Kickstarter way back in May of 2011. We were the 43rd successful Kickstarter project in the "Tabletop Game" category. As of today, there have been over 2700 successful campaigns in that same category. Since 2011, we have supported and closely followed many projects on Kickstarter. We feel confident in saying that we understand most of the issues involved with publishing and manufacturing a board game. These issues range from problems with game components, international shipping/customs, manufacturing issues, and even art delays. In short, no one can guarantee a flawless Kickstarter campaign, however we are well aware of the various pitfalls and will avoid them when possible. As with our prior campaigns, we will keep you informed with updates and answer all questions in a timely manner.

Support

Select this reward

Pledge $1 or more
About $1.00

Chairman - Thank you for your support! We will provide you with updates and behind the scenes info. Add another $1 and we will also send you an exclusive backer only signed 4" x 6" full color Collectors Card. (NOTE: All other rewards will include this.)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $95 or more
About $95

Hands in the Sea "Pre-Campaign" Bundle - This limited reward gives backers a $30 discount off the retail price, and drastically cheaper international shipping costs, for a copy of both Hands in the Sea and Forged in Steel. Each game will be signed by each respective designer, if you wish. We will also include the 8-1/2" x 11" full color 24 page Play Book for Hands in the Sea for free!

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $128 or more
About $128

Knight Works Bundle - One copy of "Forged in Steel" and "Dark Horse" to include the Dark Horse expansion "Rebels & Rogues" with ALL Dark Horse/Rebels & Rogues non-Unique Add-On's (see Update #1 for details.) This special limited reward offers backers an amazing $50 off retail costs, with free shipping to the US and a reduced cost for international shipping as well. (NOTE: If this reward reaches the quantity listed the Dark Horse base game will officially be out of print worldwide. All games will ship together when available.)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $128 or more
About $128

Knight Works "You Choose" Bundle - One copy of "Dark Horse" to include the Dark Horse expansion "Rebels & Rogues" with ALL Dark Horse/Rebels & Rogues non-Unique Add-On's (see Update #1 for details.) Plus, either a copy of "Forged in Steel" (OR) "Hands in the Sea", your choice. Add an additional $42 to receive both! If you include "Hands in the Sea" you will also receive the 8-1/2" x 11" full color 24 page Play Book for Hands in the Sea for free!

This special limited reward offers backers an amazing $50, up to $75, off retail costs, with free shipping to the US and a significantly reduced cost for international shipping!

If you would like the Dark Horse/Rebels & Rogues games/items shipped immediately after the campaign ends add $11 for
US/Canadian backers (or) $25 for all other locations.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $250 or more
About $250

Family Matters - This reward includes a copy of "Forged in Steel" and we will also add a caricature of you on one of the Family Player Character cards in the Forged in Steel game (see Update #1 for details.) BONUS: You will also receive the digital file of the illustration and your caricature will be on the box cover! (NOTE: Free shipping anywhere!)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $300 or more
About $300

Mayor Bundle - Three copies of Forged in Steel AND 3 copies of Hands in the Sea, including all Stretch Goals for each game, with free or significantly reduced shipping costs. ($60 off total retail costs and $95 off international shipping costs!)